The SRA recognised the challenges faced by contract caterers and worked with bartlett mitchell and The Lindley Group to develop the company-wide option which will see the SRA rate the sustainability of the business as a whole and assess individual sites.
Both companies said they saw this as an opportunity to reinforce their commitment to further improve their sustainability across all areas of the business. Several of bartlett mitchell’s sites already have SRA membership with one site having been formally assessed and achieving a star rating.
Mark Linehan, managing director of the SRA, said: “A huge number of people dine in outlets run by contract caterers, giving these operators great influence over what we eat and the way we think about food, where it comes from and how it is produced and served. We are very excited to have developed this new model of working with these two caterers and look forward to forming closer ties with them and other contract caterers.”
Jonathan Davies, The Lindley Group’s sales & marketing director, added: “We’re pleased to be at the forefront of the Sustainable Restaurant Association’s move into the contract catering sector, and believe that their help and guidance will enable us to fast track a lot of the initiatives we already have underway whilst opening up new avenues for us to explore.
“As members of the SRA we welcome the opportunity to have the work we are undertaking in this area assessed and benchmarked against very specific criteria which we hope will lead to our sites becoming starred sustainability champions.”